Tool holder



Oct. 19, 1965 H. N. LANE 3,212,688

TOOL HOLDER Filed Jan. 30, 1963 United States Patent O 3,212,688 TOOL HULDER Haroid N. Lane, 1216 Kenmore Ave., `ioliet, Ill. Filed Jan. 30, 1963, Ser. No. 254,933 8 Claims. (Cl. 224-5) This application relates in general to tool holders, and more particularly to a tool holder for a hammer or the like which is susceptible of being carried by an individual.

It is a common experience for a tradesman, and also for an individual, to be using a tool and desire to set it down to free the hands for same other function. Oftentimes it is inconvenient, if not impossible, for the tool user to leave his work station to get rid of the tool. In recognition of this problem, it has been a conventional practice for manufacturers of work clothes to incorporate into their garments various hooks or oversized pockets to accommodate a tool. These expedients have proven unsatisfactory in that the placement of the tool in the garment has been hindered by both the bulkiness and the drape of the material. Other disadvantages present in known garment tool holders are the tendency for the material to become worn and easily torn, and the dii'liculty in removing the tool from its holder due to the inherent clinging ability of the material. The general purpose of the present invention is therefore to provide a tool holder which will positively hold the tool, and which is free from the beforementioned disadvantages.

An object of the present invention is the provision of a tool holder which is separate and distinct from the tool users clothing, yet which may be carried upon his person in a convenient location.

Another object of the invention is the provision of a holder which will grip the tool in a positive and secure manner, yet which will readily release the tool when the user desires to remove the tool from the holder.

A further object of the invention is the provision of a tool holder which will automatically clamp the tool when it is placed therein, and which will automatically present a tool receiving opening when the tool is removed therefrom.

Still another object of the invention is to provide a tool holder which is simple in construction, efficient in operation, well adapted for its intended purposes, and relatively inexpensive to manufacture and maintain.

These and other objects of the invention will become more fully apparent from the specification and the drawings wherein:

FIGURE l is a perspective view of the tool holder of the present invention;

FIGURE 2 is a rear view of the tool holder shown y in FIGURE 1, with the back cover removed;

FIGURE 3 is a side view of the structure set forth in FIGURE 2;

FIGURE 4 is a View similar to FIGURE 3, but showing the tool holder in the tool clamping position;

FIGURE 5 is a partial sectional view on an enlarged scale taken centrally through the holder; and

FIGURE 6 is a sectional view taken along line 6 6 of FIGURE 2.

While this invention is susceptible to embodiment in many different forms, there is shown in the drawings and will herein be described in detail one specific embodiment, with the understanding that the present disclosure is to be considered as an exemplication of the principles of the invention and is not intended to limit the invention to the embodiment illustrated. The scope of the invention will be pointed out in the appended claims.

Referring now to the drawings, wherein like reference characters designate like or corresponding parts throughout the several views, the tool holder of the present invention is indicated in its entirety in FIGURE l by reference numeral 10. Tool holder 1) includes a front housing member Il, and a rear cover member 12 which is removably mounted upon housing 11. Housing 11 is provided on its upper portion with an apertured ear 13 which is adapted to receive the attaching means 14 that are used to secure the tool holder on the tool users person or on any other suitable support. In the illustrated embodiment, attaching means 14 include a connecting member 15, which is provided at one end with a spring clasp 16 that cooperates with apertured ear 13, and at the other end with a closed loop 17. A clip 18 is loosely mounted on loop 17, and is provided with a folded over resilient leg 19 which is adapted to be slipped over the tool users belt.

Front housing member 11 includes a substantially rectangular base 21, and a downwardly tapering wedgelike portion 22 securely mounted upon base 21. As is best seen in FIGURES 3, 4, and 5, tapered portion 22 is provided with a downwardly inclined jaw-like lower surtace 23 upon which gripping material 24 is affixed. Gripping material 24 may be formed from any suitable substance, such as an elastomeric compound, and is preferably provided with corrugations to enhance the gripping ability.

As is best seen in FIGURE 2, base 21 is provided with a centrally disposed opening 25, which extends substantially the entire length of base 21. Opening 25 is provided with a widened portion 25 adjacent the lower centrai area of base 21, the purpose of which will hereinafter become more fully apparent.

A slide assembly 27 is provided at the rear of base 2l, and is adapted to move vertically with respect to base 21 in slot 2S. Slide assembly 27 includes a central web 23 having a width slightly less than the width of slot 25 to facilitate the movement of web 28 within the slot 25. Web 2S is provided with two pairs of outwardly extending feet 29, only one pair of which are shown, each pair of feet being positioned upon opposite sides of base 21. The two pairs of feet cooperate to prevent lateral movement of the slide assembly 27 with respect to the base 2i.

The lower portion of web 28 forms a platform means 30 which extends outwardly through base 21, and which defines in combination with surface 23, a tool receiving opening. Platform means 36 includes an extension 31 of web 28 which projects outwardly through portion 26 of slot 25, and a jaw-like support surface 32 which is positioned at right angles to extension 31. Surface 32 is provided with grooves 33 and 34 which accommodate base 21, and which in combination with legs 29 cooperate to prevent lateral movement of slide assembly 27 with respect to base 21. Surface 32 is upwardly inclined with respect to base 21, and is also provided with corrugated elastomeric gripping means 3S similar to that shown at 24 on surface 23.

As is best seen in FIGURE 2, the lower portion of web 28 is further provided with a pair of late-rally extending wing portions 36 and 37 which abut against the lower portion of surface 32. Wings 36 and 37 are suitably apertured to accommodate the hooked end portions of springs 38 and 39, which are provided to bias the slide assembly 27 in a vertically upward direction. The opposite ends of springs 38 and 39 are secured to loops 41 and 42 which are mounted in depending fashion from bracket 43 that is aiiixed to the upper rear portion of base 21.

Latch means 44 are provided to lock the platform means in the open or tool receiving position. As is best seen in FIGURE 6, latch 44 is U-shaped in cross section, and includes leg portions 4S and 46 which are positioned on opposite sides of web 28. Web 28, and legs 45 and 46, are suitably apertured to receive the shank of screw 47, which provides a pivotal connection for latch 44 with respect to web 28. The upper end of latch 44 is provided with a cutout portion 48, which, as best seen in FIGURE 5, is engageable with surface 23 to prevent slide assembly 27 from moving vertically upward when it is in the open tool receiving position. A spring 49 is provided to bias latch 44 outwardly into its locking position. Spring 49 has its end portions seated within apertured lugs 50 and 51 which are outwardly struck from side portions 45 and 46 of latch 44. Spring 49 is looped through an aperture 54 suitably provided in web 28, and is sprung over arms 52 and 53 which are laterally offset from aperture 54 to create the necessary bias. Latch 44 is further provided with an inclined camming surface 55 which is engageable with base l2 as latch 44 begins to emerge from portion 26 of slot 25 to enable the latch 44 to emerge at a controlled rate before cutout portion 48 snaps into position upon surface 23.

In operation, when it is desired to remove the tool which is clamped in the holder, it is necessary merely to depress platform means 29 against the bias of springs 38 and 39, to release surfaces 24 and 35 from gripping engagement with the tool shank. Continued down pressure upon platform means 29 will cause latch 44 to emerge from portion 26 of slot 25 into locking engagement with surface 23, which serves as an abutment means to prevent vertical movement of the platform means back into the clamping position, and the tool may then be lifted out from the tool receiving opening. To place a tool in the tool holder, it should be understood that it is necessary only to place the tool in the tool receiving opening upon the platform means. By placing the tool in the tool receiving opening, the shank of the tool will come in contact with latch 44, forcing it to the rear and releasing cutout portion 48 from locking engagement with surface 23. Springs 38 and 39 will then move the slide assembly 27 vertically upward, and platform means 30 will be forced into clamping engagement with the abutment means formed by surface 23. It should also be noted that a cutout portion 56 is formed in surface 23 to provide an opening adapted to accommodate the finger of the user, whereby platform means 29 may be manually depressed into the tool receiving position if latch means 44 has been tripped while the tool is not in the holder.

I claim:

1. A portable tool holder for use with a tool having an elongate shank, and adapted to be carried on the person of the tool user, comprising: an elongated vertically disposed housing; a generally vertically disposed base within said housing; abutment means on said base; platform means mounted for vertical movement on said base and adapted to receive the shank of said tool; spring means urging said platform means and said tool into clamping engagement against said abutment means; latch means associated with said platform means and engageable with a portion of said base to lock said platform means in an unclamped position, said latch means having an exposed surface engaged by the tool between said platform and abutment means releasing said latch; and means on said base for supporting said holder by the tool user.

2. The invention set forth in claim 1 wherein said platform means include a tool supporting surface positioned at an acute angle with respect to said base.

3. The invention set forth in claim 2 wherein said abutment means includes a tool engaging surface positioned at an acute angle with respect to said base, whereby said tool engaging surface and said tool supporting surface converge forwardly to form a mouth of reduced width.

4. The invention set forth in claim 3 wherein said tool supporting surface and said tool engaging surface are each provided with gripping means.

5. A portable holder adapted to clamp a tool having an elongate shank, comprising: a generally vertically disposed base having an opening formed therein, abutment means on said base spanning said opening, platform means mounted for vertical movement in said opening, means biasing said platform means toward said abutment means, latch means pivotally mounted on said platform means and adapted to swing into locking engagement with said abutment means, said abutment means and said platform means defining therebetween a tool receiving opening having a mouth which is wider than the diameter of said shank when said latch means are in locking engagement with said abutment means, said latch means being releasable from engagement with said abutment means by placement of said tool on said platform means to free said platform means for movement toward said abutment means int-o clamping position under the urging of said biasing means, said mouth being narrower than the shank of said tool when said platform means are in clamping position, and means on the base for supporting said holder by the tool user.

6. The invention set forth in claim 5 wherein spring means are operatively connected to said latch means to bias said latch means .outwardly from said opening when said platform means is moved away from said abutment means to provide an exposed latch portion positioned between said abutment means and said platform means.

7. A portable holder adapted to clamp a t-ool, cornprising: a base having a front and rear side, an abutment formed on said base front side, an assembly slidably mounted on said base and having a platform portion extending outwardly from the front side of the base and movable toward and away from said abutment, spring means urging said platform portion toward said abutment, a latch pivotally mounted on said assembly on the rear side of the base, spring, means urging said latch toward a position of latching engagement with said base on movement of said platform away from said abutment, said latch having a portion exposed between said abutment and platform in the latched position of said platform, so that a tool placed between said abutment and platform will engage the exposed portion of said latch to pivot the latch out of engagement with said base and release the platform for movement toward the abutment to hold the tool against the abutment, and means on said base for supporting said holder by the tool user.

8. A portable tool holder for use with a tool having an elongate shank, and adapted to be carried on the person of the tool user, comprising: an elongated vertically disposed housing; a generally vertically disposed base within said housing and having a front and rear side; a narrow slot extending substantially from end to end of said base; abutment means on said base between the ends thereof and spanning said opening, said abutment means including a fixed jaw extending outwardly and downwardly from the front side of said base; a slide assembly mounto ed for vertical reciprocating movement relative to said base and including a web disposed in said slot; spring means biasing said slide assembly vertically upward; means on said web for retaining said web against movement away from said base; a support on the lower portion of said web; a movable jaw fixed on said support and extending outwardly and upwardly from the front side of said base below said xed jaw; a latch pivotally mounted on said web above the support on the rear side of said base, said latch having a latching surface engageable with said abutment means; spring means on said web for pivoting said latch about said web into a latched position wherein said latching surface engages said abutment means and a portion of said latch extends outwardly through said slot between said fixed and movable jaws, so that the shank of a tool placed between said fixed and movable jaws will engage the exposed latch portion to pivot the latch out of engagement with said abutment means and release the movable jaw for movement toward the fixed jaw to hold the t-ool against the fixed jaw;

5 6 and means on said base for supporting said holder by the 1,969,677 8/ 34 Stowell 24-3 tool user. 2,852,824 9/ 5 8 Kilpatrick 24-3 2,956,715 10/ 60 Henderson 224-5 References Cited by the EXamlller 3,037,806 6/62 Anderson 294 110 X UNITED STATES PATENTS 5 3,100,590 8/ 63 Bohlsen 224-3 X 595530 12/97 Dffenderfer 2%*34 HUGO o. SCHULZ, Primary Examiner.

1,727,325 9/29 Bilinski 43-79 

1. A PORTABLE TOOL HOLDER FOR USE WITH A TOOL HAVING AN ELONGATE SHANK, AND ADAPTED TO BE CARRIED ON THE PERSON OF THE TOOL USER, CCOMPRISING: AN ELONGATED VERTICALLY DISPOSED HOUSING; A GENERALLY VERTICALLY DISPOSED BASE WITHIN SAID HOUSING; ABUTMENT MEANS ON SAID BASE; PLATFORM MEANS MOUNTED FOR VERTICAL MOVEMENT ON SAID BASE AND ADAPTED TO RECEIVE THE SHANK OF SAID TOOL; SPRING MEANS URGING SAID PLATFORM MERANS AND SAID TOOL INTO CLAMPING ENGAGEMENT AGAINST SAID ABUTMENT MEANS; LATCH MEANS ASSOCIATED WITH SAID PLATFORM MEANS ENGAGABLE WITH 